WASHINGTON — In responding to the biggest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, President Trump assumed a role that was all too familiar for former president Barack Obama — consoling a shaken nation after a deadly shooting.

Like Obama, Trump is likely to confront more mass shootings, testing his leadership skills and capacity to empathize. Unlike Obama — a strong advocate of tighter restrictions on gun ownership — Trump is left with few policy solutions.

"In times such as these, I know we are searching for some kind of meaning in the chaos, some kind of light in the darkness. The answers do not come easy," Trump said in a Monday statement at the White House.

Trump condemned Sunday’s Las Vegas slaughter of 58 people by 64-year-old Stephen Paddock as “an act of pure evil," called for national unity, led a moment of silence and ordered U.S. flags lowered to half-staff. But he made no mention of an epidemic of gun violence making the U.S. unique among advanced industrial nations.

While Trump once supported a ban on assault weapons, his views have changed significantly over the past decade, and it's unlikely he'd support stricter U.S. gun laws now. In the first weeks of his administration, he approved a controversial bill to reverse an Obama-era ban on gun ownership by people ruled mentally "defective" by the Social Security system.

Unlike many challenges facing the Trump administration, Trump's offerings to the American public in the wake of mass shootings are likely to be limited to words of sorrow and "warmest condolences," which was his initial response, said professor Robert Spitzer, author of The Politics of Gun Control.

Guns are "the only policy area where the conditioned response is that the law doesn't matter, it's bad people doing bad things," said Spitzer. "That leads to a policy dead end."

Further, the National Rifle Association was the first major, deep-pocketed industry group to endorse Trump as a GOP candidate. "The NRA has doubled down with Trump, who was a long shot back when they first endorsed him," said Spitzer. "Turns out they placed a bet on the winner" and "he’s really thrown his chips with them," he said.

Like Trump, Obama's response to the first mass shooting under his leadership — at Fort Hood in 2009 — was focused mainly on those grieving. Yet his two terms included at least 14 public responses to mass shootings, and over time and with the number of incidents compounding, Obama's frustration with the relative ease with which Americans can purchase high-capacity firearms became pronounced.

That was particularly true after the 2012 slaughter of 20 children in Newtown, Conn. After that tragedy, Obama repeatedly called for tighter laws, including requiring background checks for online purchase of guns and closing the so-called "gun show loophole" that allows sales between private individuals without a background check.

In a Monday White House briefing, press secretary Sarah Sanders said Trump remains a strong supporter of the Second Amendment while dismissing questions about policy: "There’s a time and place for a political debate, but now is a time to unite as a country," she said. "It would be premature for us to discuss policy when we don’t fully know all the facts," said Sanders.

Mike Hammond, legislative counsel to the pro-gun Gun Owners of America, said trying to change gun laws in response to the tragedy is “nothing but a political ploy.”

While it's unknown exactly what type of a weapon Paddock used, it appears to have been an automatic firearm, which federal laws tightly restrict. “Given it’s illegal to have the gun he had, illegal to have it in the hotel and certainly illegal to kill 58 people, it’s not clear what sort of new illegalization is going to make any difference,” Hammond said. Even so, the state of Nevada allows the private purchase of some machine guns.

If Trump offers any remedy, based on previous remarks, it may be to suggest more guns. After a mass shooting at an Oregon community college in 2015, Trump said that fewer people would have died if more of the victims had their own guns. He made the same argument after Orlando, saying it would have minimized the death count if others “had guns strapped to their waists or strapped to their ankle.” After two journalists were shot to death on live television, Trump said "this isn't a gun problem, this is a mental problem."

Trump has changed his position on access to guns over time. In a 2000 book, he said Republicans “refuse even limited restrictions,” saying they “walk the NRA line.” He expressed support for the assault weapons ban and longer waiting periods to purchase guns.

More than a decade later, Trump began to argue that gun background checks “accomplished very little” and declared himself “a very big Second Amendment person.” In a 2015 interview on MSNBC's Morning Joe, Trump said mass shootings are a fact of life.

"It's the same old story. But what are you going to do? There are many people like that and what are you going to do? Institutionalize everybody? So you're going to have difficulties," he said.

The president's attitude shift corresponds with a cultural shift in the entire Republican Party.

In 1994, Congress approved a 10-year ban on 19 types of military-style assault weapons, including with the votes of many Republicans, like former Indiana senator Dan Coats, now Trump's director of national intelligence. Former president Ronald Reagan also supported the ban, writing a joint letter with Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford in 1994 for Congress to heed the pleas of the law enforcement community.

Yet, in the ensuing decades, the NRA and gun manufacturers have made opposition to the assault weapons ban a litmus test for Republicans running for office. The NRA has argued that any changes to U.S. gun laws will create a slippery slope to law-abiding owners losing their rights.

The volume of U.S. mass shootings corresponds with a shift towards high-capacity firearms — originally conceived for use on the battlefield — marketed by gun manufacturers. In 1980, semi-automatic pistols accounted for only 32% of the handguns produced in America. By 1991, this proportion had jumped to 74%, according to the Violence Policy Center.

In the meantime, with Republicans in control of both Congress and the White House, federal laws appear to be moving in the direction of looser regulation. For instance, House Republicans are on track to advance legislation easing firearms rules, including a package of bills backed by the NRA that would make it easier to purchase silencers.

In this Jan. 30, 2018, file photo, President Trump gestures as he delivers his first State of the Union address in the House chamber of the U.S. Capitol to a joint session of Congress in Washington, as Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Paul Ryan applaud. Win McNamee, AP

President Trump sings the National Anthem at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on January 8, 2018.
Trump is attending the College Football Playoff National Championship between the University of Georgia Bulldogs and the University of Alabama Crimson Tide. Jim Watson, AFP/Getty Images

President Trump waves as he departs after addressing the media at Camp David on Jan. 6, 2018 in Thurmont, Maryland. President Trump met with staff, members of his Cabinet and Republican members of Congress to discuss the Republican legislative agenda for 2018. (Photo by Chris Kleponis-Pool/Getty Images) Pool

President Trump returns to the White House following a weekend trip with Republican leadership and members of his cabinet at Camp David, on Jan. 7, 2018 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch-Pool/Getty Images) Pool, Getty Images

President Trump speaks with reporters as he arrives for a New Year's Eve gala at his Mar-a-Lago resort with first lady Melania Trump and their son Barron, Sunday, Dec. 31, 2017, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) Evan Vucci, AP

President Trump and first lady Melania are escorted by Rev. James R. Harlan as they arrive for Christmas Eve service at the Church of Bethesda-by-the Sea, in West Palm Beach, Fla., Sunday, Dec. 24, 2017. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) Carolyn Kaster, AP

President Trump and first lady Melania Trump speak on the phone with children as they track Santa Claus' movements with the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) Santa Tracker on Christmas Eve at the president's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., Sunday, Dec. 24, 2017. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) Carolyn Kaster, AP

President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump walk on the stage during the 95th annual National Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony at the Ellipse in President's Park near the White House in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 30, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images Jim Watson, AFP/Getty Images

In this Nov. 30, 2017, photo, President Trump holds first lady Melania Trump's hand as they walk back to the stage during the lighting ceremony for the 2017 National Christmas Tree on the Ellipse near the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) Manuel Balce Ceneta, AP

U.S. President Donald Trump leaves the White House to visit troops at Walter Reed Bethesda Naval Medical Center Dec. 21, 2017 in Washington, D.C. Trump said he was visiting the injured military service members to wish them a merry Christmas. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images

President Trump holds up a bill after signing it in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C, on Dec. 22, 2017. Trump signed the tax bill, a continuing resolution to fund the government, and a missile defense bill before leaving to spend Christmas in Mar-a-Lago, Florida. Michael Reynolds, EPA-EFE

U.S. President Donald Trump (L) hosts members of the Native American code talkers during an event in the Oval Office of the White House, on Nov. 27, 2017 in Washington, D.C. Trump stated, "You were here long before any of us were here. Although we have a representative in Congress who they say was here a long time ago. They call her Pocahontas," in reference to his nickname for Sen. Elizabeth Warren. (Photo by Oliver Contreras-Pool/Getty Images) Pool, Getty Images

11-year-old Frank "FX" Giaccio gets a pat on the back from Trump while mowing the lawn in the Rose Garden of the White House on Sept. 15, 2017. Giaccio wrote a letter to Trump expressing admiration for Trump's business background and offered to mow the White House lawn. Win McNamee, Getty Images

President Trump holds the state flag of Texas outside of the Annaville Fire House after attending a briefing on Hurricane Harvey in Corpus Christi, Texas, on Aug. 29, 2017. Jim Watson, AFP/Getty Images

Trump holds a proclamation for Made in America Day and Made In America Week that he signed during a product showcase in the East Room of the White House on July 17, 2017. Chip Somodevilla, Getty Images

Trump speaks in the Diplomatic Room of the White House on June 14, 2017, to talk about the shooting in Alexandria, Va., where House Majority Whip Steve Scalise and others were shot during a congressional baseball practice. Andrew Harnik, AP

Trump smiles as he walks with his daughter Ivanka across the South Lawn of the White House on June 13, 2017, before boarding Marine One helicopter for the trip to nearby Andrews Air Force Base. Pablo Martinez Monsivais, AP

President Trump, Speaker Paul Ryan and other congressional Republicans celebrate in the Rose Garden of the White House following the House vote to repeal Obamacare on May 4, 2017. Mandel Ngan, AFP/Getty Images

Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke listens while Trump speaks before signing an executive order to review the Antiquities Act at the Department of the Interior on April 26, 2017. Brendan Smialowski, AFP/Getty Images

Trump prepares to award a Purple Heart to U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Alvaro Barrientos, with first lady Melania Trump, right, and Tammy Barrientos, second from right, at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on April 22, 2017, in Bethesda, Md. Alex Brandon, AP

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, President Trump, Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Patriots President Jonathan Kraft stand with Patriots players as Trump holds a team helmet at a ceremony honoring the Patriots as Super Bowl champions on the South Lawn at the White House on April 19, 2017. Geoff Burke, USA TODAY Sports

President Trump, flanked by Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price and Vice President Pence, speaks about the health care overhaul bill on March 24, 2017, in the Oval Office. Pablo Martinez Monsivais, AP

Trump gets in the driver's seat of an 18-wheeler while meeting with truck drivers and trucking CEOs on the South Portico prior to their meeting to discuss health care at the White House on March 23, 2017. Jim Lo Scalzo, European Pressphoto Agency

Trump and German Chancellor Angela Merkel walk down the Cross Hall to enter the East Room for a joint press conference at the White House on March 17, 2017. Michael Reynolds, European Pressphoto Agency

Trump holds up a note and drawing depicting him that was created by the child of Greg Knox of Ohio during a meeting on health care in the Roosevelt Room on March 13, 2017. MIchael Reynolds, Pool, Getty Images

Trump walks with grandchildren Arabella Kushner and Joseph Kushner, holding a model of Marine One, across the South Lawn of the White House on March 3, 2017, before boarding Marine One helicopter for the short flight to nearby Andrews Air Force Base. Pablo Martinez Monsivais, AP

Trump reaches out to shake hands with Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., on Feb. 20, 2017, where Trump announced that McMaster will be the new national security adviser. Susan Walsh, AP

White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus and Vice President Pence look on as Trump speaks briefly to reporters after greeting Harley Davidson executives on the South Lawn of the White House on Feb. 2, 2017. Drew Angerer, Getty Images

Trump reads from one of the executive orders he signed during a visit to the Department of Homeland Security with Vice President Mike Pence, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly and other officials in Washington on Jan. 25, 2017. Chip Somodevilla, Pool/European Pressphoto Agency

President Trump holds a letter left for him by former president Barack Obama as Vice President Pence looks on before the swearing-in of the White House senior staff on Jan. 22, 2017. Mandel Ngan, AFP/Getty Images

Trump is joined by the congressional leadership and his family as he formally signs his cabinet nominations into law in the Presidents Room of the Senate on Jan. 20, 2017. J. Scott Applewhite, Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports